


over the wires came leaping

by siojo



Series: leaping sweetly, your voice [2]
Category: One Piece
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Background Relationships, Happy, M/M, Mentioned Characters, background platonic soulmates, lots of mentioned characters - Freeform, mind reading soulmates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-30
Updated: 2016-12-30
Packaged: 2018-09-13 07:35:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,175
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9113011
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/siojo/pseuds/siojo
Summary: Marco's soulmate, when they aren't trying to drive him mad with half remembered chorus lines from songs, doesn't seem to notice that he's there. Marco would pay for them to notice him, if only so that he could get some sleep and pay attention during meetings.Ace's soulmate craves coffee so much that Sabo spends most of his time hacking into the fitness watch Ace wears to keep an eye on his heart rate, but Ace is sure that if his soulmate hasn't killed him for his bad habits than he could deal with drinking a bit too much coffee.





	

**Author's Note:**

> i regret everything, so much regret. its everywhere. i started this when i was suppose to be sleeping and/or working on Thicker than forget. and just, idk?
> 
> i hope you enjoy, however, because soulmate au's are apparently a thing i like to do.

Sometimes, Marco scowls at his coffee cup as he pretends to listen to Haruta’s accounting reports, he hates his soulmate. Whoever they are, and Marco is starting to think they can’t hear him over the sound of their own mental tirade, never seems to shut up. They’ve had the same song stuck in their head for the last six days and they can’t be bothered to look up the lyrics for the rest of it like a normal person would. If Marco has to hear the lyrics for the stupid-

 

Marco jerks as Pops’s hand drops onto his shoulder, knocking his coffee all over the reports that he had collected. Marco closes his eyes to avoid looking at the mess he’s made, slouching further into his seat.

 

“Son?”

 

“They have part of a song stuck in their head.”

 

Pops laughs, “I had worried it was something more serious, son.”

 

“They won’t look it up and I’m loosing sleep because this,” He grits his teeth on the words that want to come out of his mouth because there’s a field trip coming through and Izo has already threatened everyone on staff with soap if they don’t watch their mouths. “Person doesn’t seem to keep a normal sleep schedule. Two in the morning this song is on repeat.”

 

“Have you told them that you need sleep?”

 

“I,” Marco shrugs. “I don’t think that they can hear me. Sometimes I think they can and then it’s like I’m shouting into nothingness.”

 

Pops nods, but Marco knows that he doesn’t understand. Pops had told them all when he had adopted them that there wasn’t another voice. At least not the way they did. Pops said that his voice was platonic, still as loud, but easier for him to ignore if he had to. Not that Pops had ever gotten a chance to introduce them to his soulmate.

 

“Maybe you should look up the song.”

 

“I did,” Marco hates admitting it. “I just haven’t finished it and I’m really craving coffee and I’m so tired that I have no idea what just happened in the meeting.”

 

“Maybe you should take those sleeping pills that you were proscribed, just so you can get a little bit more sleep than you have been getting. You’re starting look worse than normal, son.”

 

Marco knows what he looks like normally. His hair mussed from his hands constantly tugging at it as he tries to make sense of his siblings handwriting, the bags under his eyes from late night, and the manic look that crosses his face when he’s trying desperately to make a deadline and no one is willing to help him.

 

“Go home, son,” Pops says patting his shoulder and shaking Marco from his thoughts. “Get some rest and come back tomorrow, alright?”

 

“We have to get the rest of the paperwork for the deal with Oro Jackson Inc. done before midnight and Atmos still hasn’t given me the paperwork that I need to finish everything for his division and I-”

 

“Go home, Marco. I can get Roger to forgive a little bit of late paperwork.”

 

“It’s not a little bit of paperwork! It’s three whole divisions worth!”

 

“Marco.”

 

Marco sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose, “Fine. Fine, I’ll go home, but if I don’t get any sleep then I swear I will walk back in the building and get right back to work.”

 

“I’ll have a word with Atmos about his paperwork for you.”

 

“Thank you, Pops,” Marco says dropping the papers that he had covered in coffee into the garbage along with the paper cup. “Call me if Roger,” Marco doesn’t ask, doesn’t hint that he wants to know who Roger is, but he knows that his father will know. “Changes his mind about letting us be late.”

 

“You will be the first person that I call,” Pops assures. “Get some rest before you fall to pieces and take the company with you.”

 

Marco laughs as he steps out the door to the board room, “If I go down, I would at least make sure that the company survived me. Have to keep you supported and Stefan in dog food.”

 

“At least one of my children care about me.”

 

“I’m sure all of us care about you, I’m just the only one that can keep you from falling into ruin. I’ll be back tomorrow unless something drastic happens,” Marco waves hurrying to the elevator without stopping in his office to pick up his briefcase.

 

It’s quiet on the way down to the ground floor except for the too loud mental singing of his soulmate, still singing the same part of the chorus again and again in different voices and inflections, as if to keep themselves entertained. It was slightly more endearing now that he wasn’t knee deep in a meeting that he was suppose to be paying attention to.

 

“Here,” Jozu says, grinning as he hands Marco his phone and his keys. “Pops sent me to get these for you and to have the doorman hold a cab. Maybe tell your soulmate to shut up, once in awhile.”

 

“That seems a little rude, don’t you think?”

 

“If my soulmate was singing bad pop music-”

 

“I never said it was just, just that it was pop music,” Marco interrupts.

 

“Bad pop music,” Jozu says ushering Marco to the entrance and towards the waiting cab. “I would have told them to shut up a long time ago. So tell them to shut up so you can go to sleep.”

 

Marco rolls his eyes, “Make sure the building doesn’t burn down without me.”

 

“I make no promises,” Jozu says as Marco closes the door to the cab and leans back in his seat.

 

The cab driver is silent as he drives to Marco’s apartment building, accepting Marco’s money and tip with a pleasant exchange of pleasantries before merging back into traffic and leaving Marco to make his way inside. Marco has never been happier to have shelled out the extra money for one of the more private buildings in town as he makes his way upstairs and unlocks his door.

 

He’s digging his phone out of his pocket when it bings, a text from Pops.

 

‘Roger is more than willing to let us be late. I will see you tomorrow.’

 

Marco sighs, heading into the kitchen before remembering that he hasn’t been to the store in two weeks and is surviving almost entirely on the pastries that Izo likes to buy at the deli around the corner from the office is enough to snatch his phone back up and order pizza. Marco listens to the butchered song that his soulmate is only making worse as he waits, trying to ignore the craving for coffee that is slowly growing stronger, he’s suppose to be sleeping after he eats, coffee isn’t going to help him.

 

And he doesn’t believe in decaf. It is a horror that is whispered about by the interns and Thatch but not one that he believes exists. Like the non caffeinated tea that Haruta insists she drinks. All drinks are caffeinated, Marco will believe nothing less.

 

He jolts from his couch when the door man buzzes and checks to ensure he ordered a delivery and says that he is sending it up to him. It’s a matter of a minute’s work to tip the driver and sign his receipt and take his pizza into the kitchen. He eats it leaning against the counter leaning over the box before stumbling into the shower, singing the rest of the song that his soulmate’s been butchering.

 

His mind is blissfully quiet as he collapses into his bed, dragging a pillow closer and using his feet to pull the rumpled blankets from the foot of the bed up over himself. He falls asleep to silence.

 

 

                                                                                                                         --- 

 

 

“I hate you,” Ace mutters into his desk. “Hate.”

 

“I brought coffee.”

 

Ace lifts his head enough to check that there is in fact two cups in Sabo’s hands before speaking, “I love you, please keep me drowning in caffeine.”

 

“I thought you hated coffee.”

 

“I do, but my soulmate’s craving it and they finished that song that I couldn’t remember most of, so I think I can live with a craving for coffee. I must have driven them insane,” Ace answers shuddering as he gulps down a scalding mouthful of coffee before turning back to the folders on his desk. “Did we get all the paperwork from the department heads?”

 

Sabo nods, taking up the chair on the other side of Ace’s desk, “We did. There’s a few discrepancies in a few, but nothing that will keep up from making our deadline,” He shrugs at the look Ace shoots him. “Or I could have Koala run and yell at people?”

 

“Koala loves yelling at people, don’t act like she’s going to be upset by the request,” Ace says rolling his eyes. “Dad says that our deadline has moved to tomorrow night, have Koala take the paperwork and yell at people.”

 

“Did I hear my name and yelling?” Koala asks hopefully. “Ace, Decker says that he’s ordering dinner and he wants to know what you want. It’s chinese.”

 

“My usual order is fine. I need you to go yell at the research division, they’re numbers are off.”

 

“My favorite division to yell at,” Koala says taking the papers Sabo hands her. “You know how to show a girl a good time.”

 

“I am not getting involved with your weird relationship with Sabo, stop flirting with me before I report you,” Ace jokes grinning when Sabo sputters. “Now shoo. Away with you.”

 

Koala pouts, closing the door behind herself as she shouts down the hallway to where Decker is probably collecting orders from the other unfortunate souls that are going to be stuck with them in the office overnight. Ace rubs his temples and hopes that his headache doesn’t spill over to his soulmate, he’s pretty sure they’re sleeping for once and Ace is certain his thoughts keep them awake more often than not.

 

“You’re a horrible brother and I should disown you,” Sabo says finally.

 

“When you and Koala actually talk about you’re soulmates then I will. Until then, I will do as I please. Even Luffy’s talked to his soulmate and Trafalgar spends so much of his time in the research labs that I’m starting to think that he lives in them,” Ace shakes his head.

 

“We’re getting around to it,” Sabo mutters shifting nervously. “Dad got us another day?”

 

“No, I guess that Newgate’s right hand is about as overworked as I am. Newgate says that he hasn’t left the office in at least three days and he requested an extra day so that they could send him home to sleep and shower.”

 

Sabo nods, “Good for us then. You need anything else before I go and make sure that my numbers in accounting are all accurate?”

 

“Coffee?” Ace asks hopefully holding up his empty cup. “Please?”

 

“I hacked into your fitness watch thing and I swear if your heartbeat gets too fast because of your coffee intake, I will drag you to the nearest hospital and let you deal with Mom and Dad panicking all over you.”

 

“You are the worst birthday present that i have ever gotten.”

 

“I am the best birthday present, how dare you,” Sabo states mock offended, giving Ace his own cup and setting up the coffee maker in the corner of Ace’s office. “I’m not kidding about the hospital, Ace. I’m sure Trafalgar will be more then happy to give you another IV.”

 

“Go look at your numbers and let me do my own work,” Ace mutters wiggling his mouse to wake his monitor. “And if you see Luffy, tell him that he actually has work to do. Just because he’s head of a subsidiary of the Oro Jackson doesn’t mean that he can escape paperwork.”

 

“What does Going Merry even do?”

 

Ace stares at Sabo for a long moment, “The same things that Dad did when he was getting Oro off the ground. A bit of this and that, their revenue is outstanding for such a new subsidiary, Dad is impressed.”

 

“And Dragon?”

 

“When has Dragon been impressed by much?” Ace answers. “He’s still disappointed you changed your mind last minute and joined the company and stole Koala instead of staying in Politics with him. Now get.”

 

“I’m getting, I’m getting.”

 

Ace shakes his head and groans when it aggravates his headache, already reaching for his pills and staring longingly at the couch that he’s been using as a bed for the last few days. It’s not the softest thing in the world and he’s only been able to catch a few hours here and there, but his mind is so quiet and it would be nice to sleep. He would love to sleep.

 

But there’s a handful of documents to review, Koala has to bring back the papers from the research division and Ace has to hope that Trafalgar doesn’t take it personally and accompany her back up in a rage, not to mention Sabo has to forward the accounting paperwork after he checks it again.

 

And he is still craving coffee.

 

He just wants to lay down and sleep for the next ten years and leave the paperwork to his dad and Rayleigh, but they had asked him to take care of it and Ace knows that this is a test.

 

“I hate everything,” Ace mutters clicking around on the desktop to pull up the music play list he had hidden and starting it. “I am retiring to a tiny island where no one can find me and never coming back.”

 

“Does that mean you don’t want dinner?” Decker asks holding up the plastic container holding Ace’s food. “Because shrimp isn’t my thing, but I’ll eat it.”

 

“Give me my food, demon creature.”

 

“I am your executive assistant, don’t be so rude to me.”

 

“You’re an overpaid secretary.”

 

“I’ll defect to Going Merry.”

 

“Don’t go,” Ace whines. “But seriously, I’m starving. My soulmate spent the past six hours thinking about nothing but coffee and food. I have coffee, I need food.”

 

Decker sets the container to the side of Ace’s paperwork with a styrofoam cup, fortune cookie on top, “Here you go boss. You staying overnight again? Because I think that was your last clean shirt in the office.”

 

“No,” Ace whines glaring down at the pale yellow dress shirt. “Can you pick me up a new one? And a tie? I have to actually meet with Newgate and his people tomorrow and Dad wants to make a good impression, I guess.”

 

“I can,” Decker agrees. “I’ll send Luffy to you if I see him, shall I?”

 

“Marry me?” Ace asks hopefully as he grabs the plastic fork that Decker hands him and wrenches open his dinner. “Please?”

 

“My wife would murder us both in our sleep,” Decker says patting Ace on the head. “Sorry, sir, but I’m going to have to turn you down. I’ll get you a shirt and tie. Should I just get an entirely new suit.”

 

“Please,” Ace mutters around a mouthful of food.

 

“I’ll be back in about an hour, don’t get into trouble while I’m gone.”

 

Ace hums, trying to read over a report as he eats and failing miserably. He keeps skipping lines or reading the same one multiple times, giving up to focus on his food and finishing it in short order. He sighs, taking the lid off his soda and gulping it down quickly as Koala returns, Trafalgar on her heels.

 

Seriously, an island, Ace thinks googling how to purchase one as Trafalgar starts off on his rant.

  


                                                                                                                          ---

 

Marco wakes up without the horrible renditions of a pop song that he didn’t want to remember, which is a blessing in and of itself. He doesn’t think he could have survived another day with it playing in his head, no matter how cleverly his soulmate mixed the tone and rhythm.

 

Instead he wakes up for a very elaborate plan to buy an island and retire there where no one can find it. Marco thinks it’s the best idea and wonders if his soulmate can feel his approval for the plan as he stumbles to the bathroom to get ready for the day. Izo has obviously stopped by, Marco decides finding his favorite purple dress shirt and blue tie carefully hung and dry cleaned at the very front of his closet.

 

He has never been more grateful for Izo’s strange habit of breaking into his apartment at random to make sure he ate and had clothes. Izo is an angel and deserves those bonuses Marco gives him.

 

“You look far better,” Jozu says when Marco finally makes it into the building, a cup of coffee in his hand and feeling oddly underdressed without his briefcase in the other. “You got to sleep?”

 

“They stopped singing that stupid song.”

 

“Well, I’m glad that you are happy, we’re meeting Roger D Gol and his oldest son in an hour.”

 

“I thought he only had one?”

 

Jozu hums, “Sabo Outlook Gol is adopted. Official story is that his parents wanted to gain a foothold in Oro Jackson Inc, rumor is that the kid befriended Gol’s son and there wasn’t the best situation for him so Gol’s son asked his parents to help his best friend.”

 

“That’s actually rather sweet,” Marco mutters into his coffee.

 

“You have a soft spot for these sort of things. What is your soulmate up to?”

 

“Debating the merits of buying an island and vanishing there for the rest of their natural life,” Marco answers. “I don’t think they’ve ever had a better idea. If they go through with it, I’m asking if I can go too.”

 

“You wouldn’t last a week in the quiet.”

 

“Try me. How is our paperwork going?”

 

“That was Thatch’s job.”

 

Marco groans as the elevator opens onto the top floor just as Haruta vaults over Atmos’ desk and slams into Kingdew’s back hard enough to make him stumble into Jiro, who spills his coffee on Namur.

 

“What are you doing!” He snaps, Namur already whirling around to punch Jiro in the face. “We have a meeting in under an hour. A meeting that could mean big things for our company and you’re doing this?”

 

“We,” Atmos starts looking guilty as Stefan tears out of Pops’ office to sit eagerly at Marco’s feet, tail wagging hard enough to kick up the papers that have spilt over the floor.

 

“I don’t want to hear a single excuse from any of you,” Marco hisses. “Thatch,” He watches his brother jump to his feet from where he was leaning against Izo’s desk. “My office now. The rest of you are going to clean this up or so help me, I will buy an island and leave you to ruin.” He ignores the stuttered protests and moves to his office, leaving the door open for Thatch to join him.

 

“I thought you would be less cranky after sleeping,” Thatch says closing the door behind himself.

 

Marco sighs, sitting down and resting his head in his hands, brushing aside the concern that he can sense from his soulmate, he doesn’t have time right now, “Please tell me that we’re done with the paperwork.”

 

“We’re almost done?” Thatch offers. “We only have to have accounting double check their numbers and we’ll be finished.”

 

“And accounting is the worst division to have to wait on,” Marco says darkly. “Get them moving. I have a meeting to go to later, I don’t care if you have to sit on Haruta to make sure she does her work, but you will get it all by the end of today.”

 

Thatch stares as Marco for a long moment, “By the end of today do you mean, the end of the normal work day or by midnight?”

 

“Which ever you have to use to make sure that those papers make it to this desk on time to meet the deadline.”

 

“Fine, but if you make me late for my date tonight,” Thatch warns.

 

“Like Izo isn’t going to be your date, like he has been every single date you’ve had for the last six months,” Marco says grinning in victory when Thatch startles. “You, neither of you, are fooling anyone. Especially Pops and I.”

 

“We, I mean,” Thatch sputters, raising his hands to gesture sharply before dropping them at his sides, “I hate you.”

 

Marco takes a sip of his coffee and is saddened to find it almost empty, “I know. Now go. Sit on Haruta.”

 

“I should have told Pops to replace you with a hamster!”

 

Stefan bowls Thatch over as he heads out the door, hurrying to settle beneath Marco’s desk and wiggling to get the bone he had wedged behind the waste basket. Marco leans down to pat his head.

 

“At least you listen, don’t you?” Stefan pants, licking up the side of Marco’s face happily. “Lovely,” He mutters, standing to reach his private bathroom. The only one in the building besides Pops and given to him when Namur had complained that if Marco slept in the building that he needed a way to keep clean.

 

He takes his time, there isn’t enough time to make it to the coffee maker and he isn’t going to to be late to the meeting with Roger D Gol, not when Marco is almost certain that this is the platonic soulmate that his Pops has mentioned only a few time in his life. Even if he’s craving coffee so badly that he can’t stop thinking about it.

 

Marco adjusts his tie one last time before hurrying back into his office and grabbing his jacket, checking on Stefan before stepping out of his office, waving down one of the men in his division and ensuring that one of them would stand guard and make sure that no one ruined his office, since he had to leave the door open for Stefan to come and go as he pleased.

 

The young man in the boardroom when he arrives looks nervous, fiddling with the cardboard cup carrier in front of him.

 

“Are you alright?” Marco asks.

 

He jumps, spinning to look at Marco with wide eyes, looking more like a startled deer than a young man for a moment.

 

“I’m sorry,” He squeaks, clearing his throat before continuing. “I’m sorry, am I in your way? I was told to wait here and if you need me to leave, I can just wait in the hallway?”

 

“You can wait here. I’m Marco.”

 

“Ace,” He shuffles his feet for a moment. “I got an extra coffee, do you want it?”

 

Marco accepts happily, sighing after he takes a sip, “Thank you. What are you doing here? I haven’t seen you here before.”

 

“I’m visiting,” Ace admits playing with a straw wrapper. “My dad-”

 

“There you are son,” Pops says happily. “And this is young Ace?”

 

Roger, Marco has seen his picture and the mustache is rather memorable, “That’s Ace. Son, I see that you’ve met Marco. This is Edward, you remember me telling you about him, don’t you?”

 

Ace, Ace D Gol, smiles brightly, “Mom says that you and dad once got in trouble for filling your college’s pool with blue jello and tricking someone into jumping into it!”

 

“That we did,” Pops agrees with a laugh. “Roger spent weeks trying to make sure that the pool matched his jello perfectly, except-”

 

“He’s color blind!” Ace interrupts eagerly, hurriedly backpedalling. “I’m sorry.”

 

Pops waves Ace’s apologizes off, “No, you’re right. Roger is colorblind and that is part of what took so long.”

 

“Wouldn’t if you had helped me with it.”

 

“And than Rouge would have murdered us both.”

 

Marco ignores the argument that Pops and Roger descend quickly into, it was easy to tell that they weren’t meaning anything they said in a hurtful way and he was far more interested in Ace. Ace who is watching their fathers arguing like it’s the most interesting thing that he’s seen in ages, hand over his mouth to muffle his laughter.

 

He’s cute, Marco admits, watching him from the corner of his eye, not risking Pops noticing his attention was elsewhere. Closer to Haruta in age than Marco and recently joined the company’s upper ranks, if Marco remembered correctly, something about working his way up.

 

“Rouge,” Marco hears as he listens back into the conversation that Pops and Roger are still having, less of an argument than before. “Would have murdered us both if I helped you plan out pranks that relied entirely on color. That way, when asked, I could be your alibi. After all, if I hadn’t helped you, then there was no way you matched colors by yourself.”

 

Roger grins, looking utterly besotted as Ace sighs, “My darling Rouge is just so smart. We could all learn so much from her.”

 

“My mom,” Ace whispers, catching sight of Marco’s confusion. “Rouge D Portgas, she’s a lawyer, dad likes to talk about her whenever he can work her into a conversation. It’s embarrassing. He does the same thing for Mr. Newgate.”

 

“Pops doesn’t talk about your father all that much.”

 

Ace nods, “Dad got into some trouble, I guess, after they graduated and Mr. Newgate started up his company. His name only just got cleared, privately, of course. Dad said that he didn’t want Mr. Newgate to get into trouble too, so he begged him to stop contacting him. Dad hated it, but he had already dragged mom and her sister into the mess and he couldn’t stand to hurt anyone else.”

 

Marco raises an eyebrow but doesn’t ask, he does want to know however.

 

“He was framed for murdering some kind of politician,” Ace adds as if he knows what Marco is thinking. “Some guy named,” He frowns, his nose wrinkling cutely. “Samezaki? Something like that. Or was that the killer?”

 

“You don’t have to tell me. They found him innocent?”

 

“Yeah, turns out that someone else did it. Dad took Oro Jackson back from Gramps after that and started working harder. I had already joined up and my cousin has a subsidiary that he runs for us, but Gramps didn’t like making big changes without asking dad and that took forever.”

 

Marco nods, “If your father was on the run, where did you grow up?”

 

“Mom’s from Brazil, she took us back and that’s where I spent most of my childhood. Auntie had contacts in Portugal, so she ran off so not to have too many of us in one place.”

 

“I see,” He doesn’t but he can wait to learn more. “When do you think they’ll be done?”

 

Ace shrugs, “Mom says that they can be like this for hours. Do,” He rubs the back of his neck. “There’s a really nice deli place around the corner, want to go and eat while they do this? Whatever it is?”

 

Marco doesn’t know what they’re doing now, both of them leaning in and talking rapidly to each other, “Sure.”

 

“The most important question is how are we getting out of here?”

 

“There’s another door on the other side,” Marco answers. “Can I have one of the other coffees?”

 

Ace laughs handing one over before heading to the doorway, “You’re as bad as my soulmate.”

 

“Am I?”

 

“They’re always craving coffee and I think it’s disgusting but I ended up drinking three carafes full of it last night because they went to sleep craving coffee.”

 

“Mine gets songs stuck in their head. You would think they would just look it up and know the entire thing, but it’s only part of the chorus.”

 

“I get that. Only remembering part of the chorus, I must drive my soulmate crazy with barely remembered songs. My cousin’s said that he almost became a vegetarian out of spite because all Luffy thinks about is meat.”

 

Marco laughs, waving the doorman off as they step outside, “A vegetarian out of spite? That is a new one. One of my brothers became a chef because his soulmate was always complaining about dishes their parents made were better than other people’s dishes.”

 

“You have brothers?”

 

“Quite a few, not all of them are officially adopted, but I have fourteen.”

 

“Wow,” Ace whispers eyes going wide. “I can’t imagine having that many siblings, adopted or not.”

 

“I think Pops was lonely after your father left, he seemed sad when he first adopted me. You were born after your parents left, weren’t you?”

 

“Almost six years afterwards,” Ace agrees grabbing Marco’s arm as they reached a crowd that threatened to push them apart, pressing close to his side. “Mom was a lawyer and then dad was mostly stay at home. There isn’t an extradition treaty.”

 

“I thought America had one with Portugal?”

 

“Auntie’s contacts are political, they claimed that she had disavowed her sister and she was kept under watch while they helped hunt for the evidence to clear dad’s name. It was exciting when he was cleared, I had come to America almost eight years before that and I hadn’t been able to go back to visit. Portgas wasn’t much better name to have than Gol.”

 

“I’m glad you have your family back. And not just because Pops got his soulmate back.”

 

Ace grins, “Dad missed Mr. Newgate too. He had mom and they’re soulmates, but he missed having Mr. Newgate too and they couldn’t contact each other beyond the mental bond which doesn’t let everything through. What do you want?”

 

“I’ll be honest, I have never been here but my siblings like to bring things from here to work. I usually just stop in the coffee shop a few doors down and go from there.”

 

“What do you like to eat? I was so nervous this morning I could barely eat and I’m starving. And I’m craving something.”

 

Marco rolls his eyes, “It’s chicken and bacon, you’ve been craving it for hours.”

 

“Thanks, I-,” Ace freezes. “Marco?”

 

“Hm,” Marco asks staring at the menu blankly.

 

“How did you know that?”

 

Marco glances at Ace in confusion, “You’ve been projecting it for-,” He cuts himself off, eyes going wide, “Oh.”

 

Ace laughs, leaning heavily against Marco’s side, something happy and giddy echoing through their link, “It’s you. It’s really you.”

 

“Isn’t that what I’m suppose to say?”

 

“You were taking too long,” Ace says grinning. “Come on, we have to order and then we’ll talk, I was serious about being starving. What do you like, you never told me.”

 

It doesn’t take long to get their orders and abscond to an empty booth hidden in a corner, not with the breakfast rush finally trickle down to more manageable levels. Ace barely waits until he’s in the booth before shoving part of his first sandwich into his mouth, moaning around the food.

 

“You are ridiculous,” Marco states sipping his coffee.

 

“You’re ridiculous,” Ace mutters. “At least I noticed it was weird that you knew what I was craving. What do you want out of this? Platonic or romantic or…” He trails off.

 

Marco hums, “I think romantic. At least we can attempt it and if not, I’m fine with being platonic. I’m still stunned that I’ve actually met you.”

 

“You could be stunned by my good looks instead,” Ace says making a face that Marco thinks is suppose to be sultry.

 

“I’ve seen how you eat, that’s not going to work.”

 

“Foiled by my eating habits!”

 

“So why an island?”

 

Ace laughs, “Oh man, that’s a long story, are you sure you wanna hear it?”

 

“Tell me, we’ve got time, I doubt our fathers will be done anytime soon.”

  
                                                                                                                                      ---  


 

Roger frowns, “I was sure that we had sons.”

 

“They left over an hour ago,” Edward answers. “There’s a door on the other side of the room, they took off and haven’t come back yet. You always were single minded.”

 

“Rude, I thought we were friends! I thought you cared about my feelings!”

 

“I had forgotten how over dramatic you were,” Roger pouts as Edward laughs at him, pulling out his phone. “It seems our meeting is postponed.”

 

“What is more important than this? You needed to meet Ace and we had company things to do.”

 

“Do you even know what those company things are, Roger?”

 

“Well, no, but things! Important ones. We’re already behind schedule.”

 

Edward laughs, “Well, good luck getting our sons back. It would seem that Ace and Marco are busy discussing what they are going to do about being soulmates.”

 

Roger makes a noise of protest, already fumbling for his phone as it rings, Rouge’s picture appearing on the screen, “Honey!”

 

“Roger,” Rouge says calmly. “I’m busy, dearest, I thought Edward was suppose to help me take care of you now. It’s part of the deal we made.”

 

“Ace has a soulmate!”

 

Rouge sighs, “Roger, dearest, Ace has always had a soulmate. Most people do and you have two.”

 

“He means that Ace has met his, Rouge.”

 

“Is that you, Edward? What is this about Ace’s soulmate?”

 

“I have adopted several children while you were away,” Rouge makes a noise like a muffled laugh but Edward ignores her and carries on. “One of them, Marco, was to meet Roger and Ace with I, except..”

 

“You both got distracted talking to each other and ignored them both?”

 

“And they decided to leave for a late breakfast, since you informed Ace that Roger and I can be distracted for quite sometime. Somewhere along the way, Ace and Marco discovered that they were soulmates. They have since informed us that they will not be returning to the meeting and might even take the whole week off.”  


Rouge laughs, “Dearest, Sabo has all the information that you need to proceed should Ace wish to take the week off, you know that. Let Ace have time with his soulmate.”

 

“But, he’s still a kid.”

 

“He’s twenty-seven years old, Dearest, now if you will excuse me, I have work to do,” Edward can hear the sharp click of a cell phone snapping shut even though they no longer do that and Rouge loved to have the latest, cutting edge electronics.

 

“Marco’s a good man,” Edward says patting Roger’s back. “I’m sure that he and Ace are just working out what kind of relationship they expect to have.”

 

Roger sniffs, “I guess.”

 

“Come on, I’m sure one of my children can get us lunch and you call tell me more about Brazil.”

 

“Okay, can we get ice cream?”

 

“I’m sure that we can find some,” Edward promises rolling his eyes. As much as he missed Roger, he had forgotten how much of his personality consisted of dramatics. “We’ll even eat in my office.”

 

“Did you ever get that weird whale thing you wanted?” Roger asks perking up excitedly.

  
  
                                                                                                                                         ---

 

 

Ace frowns at Marco’s fridge, “I was hoping you could cook.”

 

“I can,” Marco says sitting on one of the bar stools. “But I also live at work and am home about as often as I was in college.”

 

“Yeah, me too,” Ace sighs. “Sometimes I wonder why I’m paying for an apartment that Sabo and Luffy use more than I do. I think I was there for a couple of hours last week.”

 

“Sounds about right,” Marco agrees.

 

“If you keep drinking coffee like that I’m going to trade it out for decaf.”

 

Marco raises an eyebrow, “Decaf isn’t real.”

 

“Sure it is. Luffy trades his soulmate’s coffee out for it when he’s been up too late. Trafalgar is usually out in the next hour.”

 

“You mean it’s real?”

 

“Yes, Marco. Decaf is a real thing, I bet if we go to the store I can even show you where to find some. Why in the world do you think it’s fake?”

 

“Because everything is caffeinated.”

 

Ace closes the door to the fridge and crowds into Marco’s space, “What about decaffeinated soda?”

 

“A lie.”

 

“Uh-huh,” Ace grins. “And what about-”

 

Marco never does find out what Ace was going to say as both their phones go off, frantic texts from their co-workers looking for things and emails filling up their inboxes. Ace drops his head onto Marco’s shoulder with a whine, “I was gonna try and convince you to make out with me on the couch like teenagers.”

 

Marco laughs, “We could, it’s not like they need us for anything. I never got to try making out on the couch, too many siblings, but I think you might like my bed better.”

 

“I think that might be moving a little too fast,” Ace teases as Roger calls, he sighs as he glances at it, “I should answer that.”

 

“Or, it wouldn’t be an island to permanently move to, but I think we could afford to vanish for a week at least and an island is an island.”

 

“Can I marry you?”  


“If you play your cards right.”

  
Ace laughs, “You said something about an island?”

**Author's Note:**

> (also i wanted to add this bonus scene where Roger was worried because no one can contact Ace or Marco and they get a postcard from them, which is really just a picture of them happy and smiling on the beach, but idk it didn't fit right and so i didn't do it.
> 
> i'm not sorry.


End file.
